THE Diocesan Bishop of Egba Anglican Communion, Bishop Emmanuel Adekunle, on Sunday sent a warning signal to the nation’s treasury looters.
The Bishop, who presides at St. Peter Cathedral Church, Ake, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, cautioned that
looters of the nation’s funds should steer clear of his church.
Adekunle declared that the church would not accept donations from stolen money and would reject tithes derived from ill-gotten wealth.
Should such happen, the Bishop cautioned, the church would not hesitate to report such persons to the security agencies.
The Bishop made these known in his sermon to mark the Ogun State Police Command Thanksgiving Service for 2016 Police Week/Easter service held at the church.
“Don‘t steal where you are working and bring to church as donation or tithe, we shall not accept such gestures, whether as donations or tithes,” Adekunle warned.
“If we discovered such we shall expose the donor,” he said, adding: “If you do this you will be ridiculed.”
The Bishop stated that it had become a fad that treasury looters donate lavishly to churches from their stolen wealth.
He lamented that in situations where churches were aware that some donations were derived from an ill-gotten wealth they still go ahead to praise sing the looters of the nation’s treasury.
The Bishop, however, said that in his church he would neither accept donations from looters nor praise them.
He maintained that if discovered such donor would be handed over to security agencies for prosecution, but assured that those with clean wealth would not be discouraged from contributing to the church.
Adekunle counseled that people should be satisfied with whatever they have and all efforts should be made to also discourage treasury looters from their sinful act.
While reminding his listeners that Jesus Christ resurrected to reconcile believers with God, the Bishop charged them to be strong in serving God.
Doing so, we are sure to see and enjoy the glory of the God, Adekunle maintained.
“Jesus resurrected to reconcile us with God. Let us be strong in serving God; doing this we are sure to see and enjoy the glory of God,” Adekunle said.
He also charged residents to always be vigilant in their various communities, saying that doing so will help expose criminals.
According to him, criminals in the society are not ghosts, but that they are people who reside within the communities, just as he stressed the need for community policing in the society.